What stands out worked out from the figures below

Cheshire has the highest household income ($147k).

Willimantic has the most renters (65.1% rent).

What matters to you?

Pick a few. We’ll pull those rows to the top and mark which town comes out ahead on each. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Raising kidsAffordabilityOwning a homeShort commuteWorking from homeYounger crowdSettled, older crowdGrowing town

Measure	Cheshire	Willimantic
People
Population	29,040Highest	18,096Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	—	+2.3% CT: +0.9%
Median age	44.9±1.4Highest 9% above CT	31.3±2.7Lowest 24% below CT
Kids under 18	21.9%±2.3Highest CT: 20.2%	20.6%±2.5Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Cheshire and Willimantic are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	21.3%±1.8Highest CT: 18.5%	11%±1.7Lowest CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	60.7%Highest CT: 42.5%	24.2%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.5%±1.1Lowest CT: 7.1%	19.1%±2.1Highest CT: 7.1%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$146,528±$12kHighest 53% above CT	$45,962±$7kLowest 52% below CT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$440,000±$17kHighest 20% above CT	$190,900±$17kLowest 48% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,398±$116Highest 6% below CT	$1,063±$68Lowest 29% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$7,755Highest 17% above CT	$4,678Lowest 30% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	44.9%±6.3Lowest CT: 52.6%	55.9%±8.1Highest CT: 52.6%
	Willimantic and Cheshire are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	5%Lowest CT: 10%	23.4%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	86.6%Highest CT: 66.5%	34.9%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1974Highest 7 yrs newer than CT	1953Lowest 14 yrs older than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	29 minHighest 9% above CT	23 minLowest 12% below CT
Work from home	19.1%±2.7Highest CT: 16%	6.2%±2Lowest CT: 16%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#18 of 149 in CT	—
School district	Cheshire School District	—
High school in town	Cheshire High School	—
Students per teacherat that high school	11.6	—
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

CT average · Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2020–2024; 2010 & 2020 decennial census; NCES Common Core of Data. “±” is the Census margin of error. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. School rank compares math and reading proficiency against the state average.